Pathways to Public Relations

Pathways to Public Relations: Histories of Practice and Profession sets its scope broadly to examine what its authors document as the historic presence of public relations. It goes beyond the notion that one model defines the practice or that research should be limited only to practices that are defined specifically as public relations. Readers are left to decide those matters for themselves, given the abundant documentation and definition that the authors bring to bear on the matter. Pathways, in that regard, gives insights into a discourse practice that seems inherent in the human condition. Robert L. Heath, University of Houston, USA What more needs to be said about public relations? Well plenty, if you want to understand how it critically influences society. Pathways to Public Relations is an edited volume that is rich with fascinating new viewpoints and historical research. By revealing PR’s often hidden and complex relationships with religion, civil society, government and corporations - and its own professional project - this book provides compelling evidence that PR’s socio-cultural significance is 'only just beginning to surface'. Kristin Demetrious, Deakin University, AustraliaPathways to Public Relations rips up the standard historical narrative of public relations and rids it of a narrow focus on corporations, professionalism and biographies of father figures. The result is a wildly diverse and fascinatingly rich volume. Øyvind Ihlen, University of Oslo, Norway Pathways to Public Relations: Histories of practice and profession' builds on the success of the International History of Public Relations Conference and offers a broad range of recent scholarship from around the world. It is a very welcome scholarly addition to the expanding field of public relations history. Tom Watson, Bournemouth University, UK